The Northman (2022)
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An exiled Viking prince embarks on a perilous quest to avenge his father's murder at the hands of his uncle during the height of the Viking Age.
The story
In AD 895, in the North Atlantic, Prince Amleth is raised to believe his destiny is fixed and that he must avenge his father if he is ever slain. Following a palace coup where his uncle Fjölnir beheads his father and abducts his mother, Amleth escapes and vows to reclaim his lineage. Years later, as a warrior in a band of Vikings, he hears a Seeress's prophecy that his fate is intertwined with a Maiden-King. He eventually finds himself in Iceland, where he must navigate a treacherous landscape of secrets and magic to fulfill his oath of vengeance and find his mother.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In AD 895, Prince Amleth is sworn to avenge his father, King Aurvandill, after his uncle Fjölnir orchestrates a coup, beheads the King, and abducts Queen Gudrún. Amleth escapes and spends years as a warrior before traveling to Iceland. There, he finds his mother living with Fjölnir and discovers she has a son, Gunnar. Amleth secures a position on Fjölnir's farm and encounters a Seeress who warns him of his destiny. He eventually obtains a magical sword, Draugr, from a warlock. During a series of orchestrated events, Amleth creates a sense of supernatural terror on the farm to infiltrate Fjölnir's inner circle. He eventually confronts Gudrún, who reveals she orchestrated the coup to eliminate both the King and the Prince. After a series of violent encounters and a desperate escape to the Orkney Islands, Amleth realizes his fate is tied to the prophecy of the Maiden-King. He returns to the farm to face Fjölnir in a final duel at the Gates of Hel. In the final confrontation, both Amleth and Fjölnir are mortally wounded. As Amleth dies, he sees a vision of his children safe, and a valkyrie carries him to Valhalla.
- First release year
- 2022
- Runtime (minutes)
- 137
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English; Old Norse; Old East Slavic
- Directors
- Robert Eggers
- Writers
- Robert Eggers · writer; Sjón · writer
- Cast and characters
- Alexander Skarsgård · Amleth; Nicole Kidman · Gudrún; Claes Bang · Fjölnir; Anya Taylor-Joy · Olga; Gustav Lindh · Gunnar; Ethan Hawke · Heimir; Björk · Seeress; Willem Dafoe · Warlock
- Genres
- epic; period; dark fantasy; action
- Themes
- vengeance; fate; mythology
- Tone and mood
- dark; gritty; visceral
- Premise and plot tags
- Viking; Revenge; Mythology; Historical Fiction
- Source material / true-story basis
- The legend of Amleth from Gesta Danorum by Saxo Grammaticus.
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film received positive reviews from critics but underperformed at the box office, later finding success on VOD and home media.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 7.7 · scale: 10 · review count: 383; Metacritic · score: 82 · scale: 100; CinemaScore · score: B · scale: A+ to F; PostTrak · score: 75% · scale: percentage
- Production trivia
- The score utilized instruments like tagelharpa and kravik lyre to create an authentic Nordic sound.; The film's marketing included a series of posters for the New York subway that were removed after going viral.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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